7 Signs of a Depressed Child

If a teenager or child feels persistently sad and moody, affecting the way they do everyday tasks, they may fall under a depressive spiral that goes beyond a short-term, situational depression. Here are a few signs to help you figure out whether a child or teenager is depressed.

Disclaimer: This is a disclaimer that this video is for informative purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose or treat any condition. Please reach out to a qualified healthcare provider or mental health professional if you are struggling.

Writer: Joshua Munoz
Script Editor: Caitlin McColl
Script Manager: Kelly Soong
Animator: Ira Alifia
YouTube Manager: Cindy Cheong

References

[Psychgo]

What is the longest plane trip you have taken?

[Raghav-txym]

0:40 Over reliance on a smartphone.
1:10 Withdrawal from friends and family.
1:50 Difficulty concentrating.
2:20 Low energy.
2:50 Feelings of guilt.
3:20 Loss of interest in fun activities.
3:57 Changes in eating habits.

[SoundwaveAeron]

Parents: "these aren't signs of depression! These are them just being lazy!"

[khalilahd.]

I have a little sister that is my world but sometimes I feel as though she’s distant and I never want to be the person saying I wish I saw the signs. This is super informative and I’ll definitely be looking out for them 🙏🏽

[keirafilms]

I feel like so much anxiety and stress comes from school and all the pressure surrounding it. 😔

[kartikkaushal]

Helping a person might not change the world. But it can change the world for one person 🥰🥰🥰

[chynabarbieeeeee]

I can relate to this video in so much ways. I'm feeling real depressed at home and school. I'm struggling mentally and the kids at school always bully me, even my own parents and I've tried to end it. Thanks for always covering deep topics like this psych2go

[official_yunishinoya]

Me: *watching videos so I can be aware and also your voice is soothing to me*

Also me: *noticing I have been feeling all of these things for four years straight*

[shrimpquesadilla]

I’ve had depression all my life and was diagnosed with major depressive disorder when I was 18. Another thing I did as a young child was I noticed I had super morbid and existential thoughts compared to others my age. Idk if that’s just me, but I think that’s another huge sign of depression in children- more frequent thoughts on pessimistic/sad/morbid/mature topics.

[omnilawrence]

I was watching this just out of curiosity but I’m 21 and I’ve had all of most of these symptoms since I was a child and it still blows my mind that my parents never noticed or got me help. I dropped out of college and hit rock bottom and finally I realized that there was actually something wrong with my mental health. I’m so grateful for this channel and just YouTube I’m general! It’s changed my life and taught me so much😁❤️

[sillylilly]

i was depressed once, when i was around 10 (it really wasn’t because of the people around me, they were all extremely loving and it was just a phase of mine !) all the things you listed were very accurate and it really wasn’t nice, but necessary to deal with all the feelings i had bottled up !
i’m only a few years older now, and i got much better by comforting/listening to myself ^ ^
thank you for making these videos, they’re very helpful and have tought me (and i’m sure many many other people) so much !! i wish you the best ♡
sorry if this is very long or unecessary, i just wanted to share it ^ ^"

[businessisboomin]

I've been struggling with depression since I was 7-8 till date (17 now) and finally discovered near the end of last year that I have depression cuz of this channel. This video described me pretty well, and add anxiety, overthinking to the mix and boom! You got it feels like core memories of mine are just...not there? My memory is so bad that I don't remember anything from years or even months ago, also can't easily get things to enter my brain as new memories....have seen a video about how this is cuz of constant stress affecting the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.

[WhatDoesTheCowSay]

Sometimes It scares me, how I relate to these, even tho I was actually diagnosed with depression

[randompersonontheinternet]

This was very accurate for me, I felt like I could relate. My depression first started when I was 10, it’s been a couple years, and I think it’s at a decent state right now, I finally opened up to a friend, so I have a bit of support!

[Sky_Dragon_OwO]

0:39 - Sign 1: Overreliance on a smartphone

1:12 - Sign 2: Withdrawal from friends and family

1:50 - Sign 3: Difficulty concentrating

2:18 - Sign 4: Low energy

2:49 - Sign 5: Feelings of guilt

3:22 - Sign 6: Loss of interest in fun activities

3:56 - Sign 7: Changes in eating habits


I hope this helped 😄

[aiiiia]

My sister had depression pretty bad...
When she was 13 she cried of guilt because our parents got her an expensive birthday gift
And she used to lock herself in her room every day avoiding almost everyone I was one of the only people she let into her presence to do activities or chat with her
I wish I had understood more about what she was going through but I was only a small child and a very happy one who only wanted to get along with every one and didn't get into sad topics

Maybe that's what she needed though, I don't know. I hope she is doing better now. Haven't seen her in a bit, it's complicated.

[aiiiia]

What NOT to do:
¤ Scold them for being depressed
¤ Blame them for their depression
¤ Tell them to "just" suck it up
¤ Saying "It's not that bad" "others have it worse"
¤ Attack the symptom (don't use your phone, just study or focus harder, etc) instead of being attentive to their emotions

What to do:
¤ Excercise compassion
¤ Stay calm and excercise self compassion as well
¤ Patience
¤ Listen to them, ask what THEY need.
¤ Encourage them to seek help
¤ Work TOGETHER on strategies to get better (rather than bossing them around)



These things seem obvious to me now, but I realize that some perople aren't going to get it when they first have to encounter depression in their circle. It can be very scary and you may unknowingly lash out which is not good for anyone. I don't have depression I am just interested in being helpful to those who do and learning to be more understanding. If you have more experience, let me know if I should change anything in the list.

[JoeyBiv]

I’m a teen, and I have literally all of these symptoms. I’ve been feeling awful for about a month, but I’m too scared to reach out for help

[justalpha]

I was extremely sad and frustrated oftentimes when I was younger because I would get harassed a lot in school for my mental disabilities. This even manifested at one point to suicidal thoughts, which I brushed off as just mere side thoughts at the time. It's for these reasons alongside others as to why as and adult I'm much more self-assured and happy as a person compared to during my childhood.

[utopiapro]

I wish I had seen this in myself as a teen. I had gone through an extremely rough emotional patch that resulted in my parentification. Ever since then, I just... Started distancing myself from everything. I'm just now seeing a therapist to unwind that and a whole lot other baggage a decade later.